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[RC] The Weekend from Hell - Joe LongWe rode the Indian Springs 100 this weekend at Binn's Ranch in New Mexico. A good ride, well managed, well-marked trails, great hospitality. Alas, it was not exactly a good time for Kat and I (or Sanshra). First, the transmission went out on our truck just as I parked the trailer. I lost all forward gears, after barely getting the truck to move away from the trailer after unhitching. Reverse worked fine, so I backed it around to park it. I thought it might have just been low on fluid, so I added some, but that didn't help. So, Saturday morning while I'm riding the 100, Kat is having our truck hauled into Socoro to the Ford dealer there, planning to rent a car so that we can get home. Roger Taylor helped us hook up with the Ford dealer, and Susan Horne brought Sanshra home for us in her trailer. We got the word from the dealer this morning that the transmission must be replaced, and it's not covered under any warranty. We'll drive the rental car back the end of the week to pick up our truck and trailer (the trailer is still at base camp). Well, Kat couldn't find a rental car in Socoro and had to go another 100+ miles to Albuqueque to rent one, and so was gone all day mostly waiting on her rides. Meanwhile back at the ranch, Sanshra was having a bad day. No one specific think, just a case of "ADR" (Ain't doin' right). This early in the season for us I think he wasn't fully back from the effects of the sand at the mulitday ride two weeks ago. Anyway, although he was first to recover at the 50-mile vet check, his gut sounds were nil and he just nibbled at his food, looking dejected. He didn't even want to walk with me when I walked him. The vets had asked me to come back for a recheck, to recheck the gut sounds, but I told them I was pulling from the ride. I put him over near the horses we'd been riding with and he "stole" some of their food, and began to perk up some. The vets did a recheck and his gut sounds were back, but I still pulled. It is possible that had I just waited there another hour or so, then gone on at a reduced pace, we could have finished, but I just didn't think it was worth the risk. I'd rather pull with a questionable horse than try to go on and get into real trouble, and even if we had managed to finish, it wouldn't have been fun for either of us. After Sanshra and I were trailered back to camp, and Kat didn't show up for hours and hours, I got concerned and called the State Police (Kat won't carry a cellphone). I'd just finished explaining the situation and gave the woman Kat's name when there was some noise in the background and the State Police woman says "She was taken to the County Detention Center." Well, THAT got my attention! But she was talking on the radio about another case. Kat finally showed up,it was just a case of having to wait so long to get a ride to Albuqueque and rent a car. Alas, the $4,000 this is going to cost us is going to force me to scale back my ride plans for this year -- how much remains to be seen. But my hope to compete for the National 100 Mile Award is pretty much in the tank. Well, there's always next year! At least we had the good luck that the transmission didn't break until we reached camp, and that Susan Horne was there and able to haul Sanshra home for us. He is his old self already, showing no ill effects from the ride. I would like to say a GREAT BIG THANK YOU to Roger, Susan and all of the people who helped us over the weekend. -- Joe Long jlong@xxxxxxxx http://www.rnbw.com =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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